A mug only a mother could love

It’s been a long time since Cera met a camera she didn’t like.

She’s been a poser practically since birth, but I think her love of the lens really kicked in last spring, when she had her very own two-hour photo session at the park. She had a blast smiling and laughing and dancing and doing whatever else the photographer asked her to do, and the photos were phenomenal.

Cera’s string of good pictures has continued, with her gymnastics photo easily being the cutest in the class (although I ‘m more than a little biased).

Even her fall school picture, with the same dull blue background photographers have been using for years, was adorable. I love that gap-toothed grin!

So I was shocked – and rather amused – when Cera’s Ident-A-Kid card arrived with this photo on the front:

Is it just me, or does it look like she got pulled over after a night of heavy partying with her Hollywood friends?

“Why didn’t you smile?” I asked.

“No one told me to,” Cera replied matter-of-factly.

What photographer doesn’t ask a kid to smile? Wait – was this picture secretly taken at the DMV?

I hope whoever snapped Cera’s spring school photos, which have yet to arrive, followed protocol and told her to say “Cheese!”

Although I admit, Cera’s first – and hopefully only-ever – “mug shot” has provided lots of laughs for friends and family of this camera-loving kid.